Everything You Need to Know About Movember, the Month-Long Mustache Growing Contest

The Movember movement, whose tagline is “Grow a Mo, save a Bro,” uses facial hair as a fundraising tool to help tackle prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and suicide. (miljko/iStock.com)

If photos of facial hair gradually begin to infiltrate your social media feeds over the next month, don’t panic—Movember is back. The month formerly known as November has become the biggest men’s grooming event in the world—but though it may sound frivolous, it has a serious cause. As the tagline “Grow a Mo, save a Bro” sums up, the movement uses facial hair as a fundraising tool to help tackle prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and suicide globally.

The rules for Movember are simple. All participants need to do is begin the month clean-shaven, sit back, and watch their mustaches sprout (while being sponsored by family and friends for their efforts). Beards and goatees are banned, and the Movember website asks only that each “Mo Bro” conduct himself “like a true gentleman.” Alternatively, both male and female participants can take on a physical challenge or host a social event. As the charity states, they welcome “anything to attract attention and raise funds.”

Members of the Anaheim Ducks Power Play pose for a photo during Movember before a game against the Calgary Flames at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. (Debora Robinson/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Movember movement was first established in 2003 in Australia as a means of raising awareness about men’s health issues, and it was turned into an official charity in 2004, with funds donated to the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia. By 2007 the charity had spread to New Zealand, Canada, Spain, the U.S., and the U.K., partnering up with prostate cancer organizations in each nation.